SHIPPING BATTLES: Fluttermac vs Fluttercord

Hello, everypony! This is GJ_6532 with another installment of Shipping Battles. In last week’s edition, I pitted the overvalued Sparity against the undervalued Fancity, whereas this week I’m having TWO highly popular shippings go head to head. This time, they both involve Ms. Pensive and Apprehensive herself, Fluttershy.

Fluttershy is definitely up there as one of my favorite ponies. I’d say she comes in second place behind Rarity. What I mostly admire about her is her ability to be a lovably kind pony to her surroundings, yet zealous and contentious when needed. She can do and be most practically anything. And of course, there’s the fact that she so goddamn cute. Like, it’s almost criminal. Being my next favorite pony, I found it reasonable to make her the focus of the next Shipping Battles. And of course, we’ve got two hot contestants up to bat today.

First off, we have the earth pony stallion with such a unique way with words: Big Macintosh. Other than Sparity, Fluttermac has to be the most hyped shipping in the entire fandom. I feel like ever since the beginning, people have been pairing him up with Fluttershy like crazy. And it’s not hard to see why. He’s almost like Ander the Giant: strong but with a gentle heart; hard working but with an easygoing attitude; macho but with a compassionate mindset. If there’s anypony that needs somepony soft and sturdy to be by their side, it’s Fluttershy.

And then we have Discord. Easily the best villain in the series (or villain turned hero if you prefer), he’s a creature whose main goal is, or was, to chaos and havoc throughout all of Equestria. That is until yours truly helped reform him and turned him good, even befriending the dastardly fellow and becoming the only buddy he’s ever had. However, many fans have wished for these two to be more than friends, and that hopefully the Element of Kindness and the God of Chaos will one day become one.

I feel like people either really love these two shippings, or really hate them. As for me, well…I’m not going to lie: this is a very hard one for me to decide. I find my cheeks flaming every time I see Fluttershy with either of these guys. Both pairings are freakin’ adorable, and honestly, I can see both of them working out perfectly. But seeing this is a battle, only one can come out on top. So who is more functional with Fluttershy? Well, just like last time, I’ll use the five c’s, them being chemistry, compatibility, communication, compromise, and commitment, to determine who will reign supreme.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s get this started. This is Shipping Battles: Fluttermac vs Fluttercord!

Round 1: Chemistry

First up, we have the round of chemistry. This is where I determine which of these two is more attractive. After last week’s post, I think I got a much better grasp on what it means to have good chemistry. That being said, who does have better chemistry?

Since neither guy has shown enough chemistry with Fluttershy, at least not that I know of, I’ll focus on how Fluttershy can be attracted to them. Of course, Big Macintosh is the more physically good looking of the two. I mean, his face isn’t much to talk about, but have you seen him lift up a stove? With a physique like that, he’ll get any mare to swoon.

Discord is…well, he’s something. Physically, he’s not entirely pleasant to look at. I mean, he resembles a Chinese dragon…that happens to have the tail of a snake, the arms of a lion and eagle, the legs of a reptile and buffalo (I think), and…well, the rest is very vague. My point is he’s not what you’d call an engaging site.

So you’d think that because Big Mac has a better physical structure, he outmatches Discord in this round. But remember what I said about how chemistry doesn’t only come from handsomeness but also personality characteristics? That’s how Discord manages to beat out Big Mac. Discord’s personality is outstanding. He almost reminds me of Professor Ratigan from The Great Mouse Detective, where he’s very glib in his nature. His has this superficial, yet sadistic, charm to him that simply draws you in to whatever he has to say. His flamboyance gets you hooked on every single word that comes out of his mouth. I think those qualities compliment his various facial expressions nicely, which I also find engaging.

As I stated earlier, Big Mac’s personality is very tranquil and easygoing. While it’s far from a bad personality, it doesn’t exactly seem too alluring when it comes to romantic relationships, especially when compared to Discord’s. I mean, imagine if you were meeting either one these guys for the first time. Which conversation would you immerse in more easily? Who would fascinate you the most? Which guy would leave you saying, “Well I sure want to see him again”? Yeah, I think we know the answer.

Point goes to Fluttercord.

Fluttermac: 0

Fluttercord: 1

Round 2: Compatibility

Now we’ve come to the next part of the battle: best compatibility. This one is all about similar or different interests, goals, flaws, traits you name it. So now there’s the question of who shares more in common with Fluttershy.

Just like last time, deciding this is far too easy. Clearly Big Mac is more compatible with her than Discord. Him and Fluttershy aren’t as analogous as Fancy Pants and Rarity, but they do have enough in common. They both follow tranquil lifestyles; always behaving in soft and unspoken manners. Some fans have even argued that Big Mac himself is shy as well, and I’d be willing to believe that.

Discord, on the other hand, is almost nothing like Fluttershy. I guess you can say that they both love having Tuesday Tea Sessions, but nothing beyond that shows that they are comparable. They’ve fought on several occasions, and I think that might be mostly due to their vast differences, with him having more chaotic principles and her having kind-hearted qualities. As I’ve stated before, just because “opposites attract” doesn’t mean they’ll last.

That’s not to say that Big Mac and Fluttershy don’t have differences, too. Big Mac displays more robust qualities, and while Fluttershy does occasionally show forcefulness, it doesn’t overshadow the feeble characteristics that she possesses. Frankly, the two of them having a few key differences shows how much more suitable they are for one another.

Point goes to Fluttermac.

Fluttermac: 1

Fluttercord: 1

Round 3: Communication

So folks, now we’ve entered the round of communication. In order to communicate with your partner, you must express interest in their daily endeavors. Comprehend their problems. Give advice. Impart your own needs. The list just goes on. So now that raises the question: who can communicate better with Fluttershy?

I think it’s time we address the elephant in the room and say that it’s kind of hard to figure out how well Big Mac and Fluttershy communicate with one another because they’ve never even freakin’ talk with each other on the show! The closest they ever got to an interaction was when Big Mac glanced at Fluttershy in “Filli Vanilli”…and that’s about it.

That’s some pretty stiff competition, because Discord and Fluttershy have had several episodes where their relationship was the main focus (“Keep Calm and Flutter On”, “Make New Friends but Keep Discord”). By the time the latter aired, these two have shown how far they’ve come to building a strong and friendly bond. They do everything from listening to the funny stories they tell each other to going out with one another to even having tea parties together. Fluttershy also helps coach Discord on some social cues, which he acknowledges with ease.

With Big Mac, it’s kind of hard to get inside his head and determine how he would chat with the yellow pegasus. Even though Fluttershy has become more outgoing throughout the course of the show, I feel she’s still a tad bit timid under social circumstances. That would make it very hard for her to converse with a stallion who mostly responds with “Eeyup” or “Nnope”. Yeah, haven’t you ever thought about what you would say in response to a yes or no question? But I digress.

This round may be a bit unfair since we’ve seen Fluttershy’s bond with Big Mac never grow and her bond with Discord always grow, but even when trying to come up with my own idea of how the red stallion would encounter the mare, it just doesn’t feel like anything would spark. Sorry Big Mac, but I got to give it to the Chinese dragon this time around.

Point goes to Fluttercord.

Fluttermac: 1

Fluttercord: 2

Round 4: Compromise

Now it’s time to focus on best compromise. The aspect that involves negotiating with the opposite party and putting their needs before your own, as a wise computer generated snowman once said. So now it’s time to decide who would give up more for Fluttershy.

Well, “Keep Calm and Flutter On” revolved entirely around Fluttershy wanting Discord to retire his evil intentions and turned to the good side. When Fluttershy befriended him, he felt as if continuing his calamity was worth giving up the one friend he ever had. But soon he found that losing a close friend really can hurt, and upon discovering this, he abandons his nasty ways for the sake of staying close with the mare. Even the quote he says at the end sums up what he had learned: “I liked it better my way, but...I guess when you're friends, you can't always have things exactly your way all the time, eh?” Need I say more?

Big Mac doesn’t really have anything to sacrifice for Fluttershy. He has Sweet Apple Acres, which he’ll have whether he’s with Fluttershy or not. He has his sisters, one of them being close to Fluttershy. He has his apples, which are on the farm that he’ll always have whether he’s with Fluttershy or not. I guess you can say that work tactics might become a subject of negotiation, but I don’t really see how that would turn into a challenge.

At first, I thought the compromising situations in Fluttercord would be handled very fairly…until I saw a review by MrEnter of “Keep Calm and Flutter On” that opened my eyes to something. In his review, he stated that when Fluttershy said that she wants to gain his friendship so that he’ll listen to her, it implied that she’s using her affection in order to have Discord do what she says. While I don’t find this to be her true intentions and see it more as the writer’s mistake, it does somehow bring up a good point: why does only Discord have to sacrifice his needs for Fluttershy? I mean, Discord has needs, right? And he does deserve them, RIGHT? And not all of them involve chaos and ruin, RIGHT? Just because he’s a god of chaos doesn’t mean he shouldn’t have his own needs brushed off, at least not all of them. To have only Fluttershy’s demands be met doesn’t sound fair in terms of relationships. I guess all you can do is hope that Fluttershy would eventually realize that not all of her demands will be met, and that Discord will have some of his own that needs to be put before her own. Perhaps Fluttershy will renounce her constant devotion to always being good. You never know.

I hate to end this round on a bit of an unfair note, but still, I got to give it up to Fluttercord. They showed at least one of the characters are willing to negotiate with the other and try to come out with the most logical results. While I can’t see any compromise happen with Fluttermac, Fluttercord has at least proved that one of the characters can come to a settlement.

Point goes to Fluttercord.

Fluttermac: 1

Fluttercord: 3

Round 5: Commitment

And now we’ve come to the fifth and final round: commitment. This is where we decide which of our gentlemen truly wants to stay in a relationship with our darling mare. As I’ve stated in my last Shipping Battles, what proves commitment is how much you’re willing to learn about yourself and grow as a living being. With that being said, who is more inclined to maintain a long-term relationship with the yellow Pegasus pony?

As I stated in the last round, Discord would be able to grow through the bond by learning how to not routinely cause chaos and express a kind, loving heart. This can easily be done through Fluttershy’s wisdom about gentleness. But like what I said earlier, what would Fluttershy have to take out of the whole thing? Just like what I said about Sparity, it shouldn’t be only one party that gains something out of the bond. There must be knowledge and new information passed on to both of them. That’s where I think Fluttercord is mostly flawed.

After reading RoyGBiv-MLP’s fanfic simply titled “Fluttermac”, which is a remarkable story by the way, I got a much stronger idea about how Fluttermac can show true commitment. For most of his life, Big Mac has only truly cared about apples, his sisters, and Sweet Apple Acres, and while Fluttershy is close to the rest of the Mane Six, she probably doesn’t have somepony close enough to her to discuss her deepest and most personal of problems. She needs a special stallion to help her open up and describe what she’s going through. In return, Big Mac would learn how to bond with those around him, as we rarely see him do on the show. Sure, he’s interacted with his sisters a lot, but it’s uncommon for him to do so with other ponies. It would be due to his relationship with Fluttershy that he could learn how to be social, outgoing, and extraverted. That’s not only freakin’ adorable, but it is also a way for both characters to grow, rather than just one.

So for the final round, I have to give the point to Fluttermac. However, it’s still not enough to beat Fluttercord. With three points under its belt, the victory goes to Fluttercord!

Fluttermac: 2

Fluttercord: 3

This almost is like the Twilight movies where the fandom is entirely split on these two pairings and you have to choose between either one. The only difference is that these characters are worth giving a damn about and those are not. But in all seriousness, this was a hard one to decide. I truly think either shipping would work effectively, so it was challenging to choose one over the other. There are still a few imperfections that need to be worked out. Fluttershy could interact with Big Mac more frequently, or at all, and she could be less demanding of Discord and grow to trust him a bit more. At the end of the day, this all remains subjective, and it’s your opinion that matters the most. I’m just here to express my own.

So keep in mind that Fluttercord may have won the battle, but it is still fighting the war!!!

Thank you all so much for reading. If you have any questions, comments, or criticisms of any kind, just be sure to leave them down below. Thank you all and I bid farewell for now!